Fishing at French Lake, Cariboo Regional District, British Columbia

• Overview

  Out in Cariboo Regional District, British Columbia, sits French Lake. Elevation runs to 1,142 metres. Roughly 63 hectares: a morning covers one end, an afternoon the other. The edge runs 3.5 km or so, easy to work in an afternoon. 100 Mile House lies 37 km from the water. The nearest city of size is Kamloops, 108 km away. Rules here are straightforward: one set of provincial rules.

• Where to Fish on French Lake

  Depth is unmeasured here, so let the shoreline guide you. Still water like this holds fish on the edges rather than out in the open. The productive water is a rod length or two out, not a hundred. Survey and observation records for Cariboo Regional District include sockeye salmon, Chinook salmon and bull trout. Some of the species recorded here are protected or tightly regulated, so check what may be targeted before you fish. Fish French Lake where the bottom changes rather than where it looks deep.

• Seasonal Patterns

  Long-run averages give August about 14°C and January about -8°C. The year splits cleanly: hard water, then open water. The lid usually goes in mid April, which opens the strongest weeks of the year. Expect the water usable from around mid April until roughly mid November. The shoulder weeks of the open season are the productive ones. Plan any trip to French Lake around it.

• Tackle & Baits

  Public data does not answer the access question here. It formed naturally, so levels move with rainfall rather than with a gate. A campsite lies 510 m away for anyone staying over. Trout here take small spinners, spoons and, where fly water allows, a nymph or dry. Read any posted signs at the access point rather than assuming. Some ground is open by custom rather than by right, so tread carefully. Failing this one, try Needa Lake, 3.2 km away. What applies at French Lake may have changed since it was mapped.